A recipient of the prestigious Gilmore Artist Award (often called the “Nobel Prize for Piano”), Rafał Blechacz achieved an unprecedented triumph at the 2005 International Chopin Competition in Warsaw, carrying away not only the First Prize but also all other prizes in the Competition’s individual categories. Today he has a brilliant career, appearing in the world’s major concert halls and being regarded as the leading Chopin performer of his generation. Similarly, Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra is highly regarded as a musical ensemble, counting thousands of concerts and over three hundred recordings for the world’s major recording companies. The thriving Serbian conductor Aleksandar Marković, the orchestra’s first guest conductor, conducts this evening’s concert, which culminates with the heartbreaking Second Symphony of Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki, who had been the orchestra’s artistic director for several years.
With the support of Adam Mickiewicz Institute
and the assistance of The Embassy of Poland in Greece
The Adam Mickiewicz Institute is a national cultural institution, whose goal is to build a lasting interest in Polish culture around the world. The institute works with foreign partners and initiates international cultural dialogue in line with the goals and aims of Polish foreign policy.
The institute has put on cultural projects in 70 countries on 6 continents, including Great Britain, France, Israel, Germany, Turkey, USA, Canada, Australia, Morocco, Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, as well as in China, Japan and Korea. To date, the institute has presented 38 strategic programmes seen by 60 million viewers. AMI is funded by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
The institute’s flagship brand CULTURE.PL – an up to date cultural news service, discussing the most interesting events and phenomena related to Polish culture – offers articles and news in three languages: Polish, English, and Ukrainian.
Interactive garden inspired by the work of Krzysztof Penderecki
